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Greece's jobless rate rose to 27 percent in February from a downwardly revised 26.7 percent in January, the country's statistics service ELSTAT said on Thursday.

It was the highest reading since the statistics service began publishing jobless data in 2006 and more than twice the euro zone's average reading of 12.1 percent in March, reflecting the impact of a deep, austerity-fueled recession.

The number of unemployed rose to 1,320,189, ELSTAT said, while 3,568,186 were registered as employed.

The highest rate was registered for youths aged 15-24, at 64.2 percent.

Speaking in an interview broadcast Thursday morning on state-run NET television, Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said he believed Greece's battered economy will begin to recover starting next year, with the country's unemployment rate starting to fall from the end of 2014 onwards. [Combined reports]